Education Briefs

The Early Childhood Council of La Plata County announces an upcoming Expanding Quality in Infant/Toddler Care Training Program. This is a 48-hour Colorado Department of Human Services approved training.

Training will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. Wednesdays from Jan. 16 through May 8. Attendance is mandatory at every class. The registration deadline is Dec. 17.

For more information or to register, email Heather Hawk at heatherh@ecclaplata, call 247-5960, ext. 20, or visit www.ecclaplata.org.

Rural electric youth tour available

La Plata Electric Association and The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association are seeking high school juniors to be a part of the National Rural Electric Youth Tour to Washington, D.C., from June 13 to 20.

The application deadline is Dec. 17. All high school juniors whose households receive electricity from LPEA are eligible. The tour will feature a look at the federal government and the nation’s Capitol, including museum and monument tours, as well as interaction with Colorado’s elected representatives. Social activities also are part of the trip.

LPEA seeks to sponsor one student from each municipality within its service territory – Durango, Bayfield, Pagosa Springs and Ignacio. Home-school students are eligible. To be considered, students must complete the tour application, along with an essay of 500 words or less about any aspect of the electric energy industry. Applicants will be evaluated on their essays, and those selected will be notified after the holidays. Applications are available at www.lpea.coop, from high school counselors and at the LPEA offices in Durango and Pagosa Springs.

Liberty School’s fourth annual Dyslexic Hall of Fame Gala will be held at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at the Strater Hotel’s Henry Strater Theatre, 699 Main Ave.

The evening will include a cash bar, silent auction, dinner and presentations by this year’s Hall of Fame inductees. Support will provide scholarships to kids with dyslexic and/or gifted learning needs, and will keep the school running for current and future students.

The Liberty School is a small, private school that maximizes the potential of dyslexic, gifted and twice-exceptional children. Its specialized curriculum gives one-on-one Orton-Gillingham tutoring where the most help is needed. Tickets are $65, and can be purchased through the school at 385-4834 or visit www.thelibertyschool.org.

Native American Center to host program

The Native American Center Elder-in-Residence Program called “My Grandmother’s Stories: Our Life and History on the Northern Plains” will be held at 5:45 p.m. today in the Center of Southwest Studies Lyceum.

A reception will precede the talk from 5 to 5:30 p.m. Richard B. Williams, retired president and chief executive officer of the American Indian College Fund, will share personal stories passed on to him by his grandmother who was born in 1899.

For more information, call 247-7292 or 247-7222.

Continuing education available at FLC

The Fort Lewis College Continuing Education Program will offer these classes:

“Dare to Prepare 101” with Chuck Helvoigt will begin at 6 p.m. today. Participants will learn skills to survive when the community experiences a major emergency. The cost is $129 for six classes Wednesday evenings through Dec. 19. Course materials are included.

“Get Paid to Talk: An Introduction to Professional Voice-Overs” will be held Thursday evening. This class will cover the basics, including how to prepare a demo and how to be successful and earn income in this field. The class will be taught by an industry pro from VoiceCoaches Creative Voice Development Group. The cost is $59 for one class.

The Liberty School will host a Visitors Day from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Nov. 15.

The school is a small, private school that maximizes the potential of dyslexic, gifted and twice exceptional (both gifted and dyslexic) children. Its specialized curriculum gives one-on-one Orton-Gillingham tutoring where the most help is needed.

For more information, call Bill O’Flanagan at 385-4834 or email thelibertyschool@live.com. The school is located on the second floor of 215 E. 12th St.

DHS art show to be held Friday, Saturday

The Durango High School Art Show, featuring student work from a variety of mediums, will be held from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the school.

The community is invited.

DAVINCI students to host showcase

DAVINCI students will present their first showcase from 8:30 to 10:45 a.m. Nov. 15 at Durango High School.

Student work will be exhibited in the DAVINCI hallway, and student performances will be in the auditorium during this time.

The showcase will occur three times during the school year, when each DAVINCI student will showcase an example of their work or a talent.

DAVINCI also is looking for parents who are interested in participating on the DAVINCI Community Advisory Board.

San Juan Basin Health Department will partner with Durango School District and the Durango School Based Health Center to offer on-site immunization clinics from 9 to 10 a.m. Tuesday at the School Based Health Center at Durango High School.

These vaccinations will be offered to any student who needs to update or complete vaccination requirements: Tdap, meninngococcal, HPV (for both males and females), varicella, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, polio and flu. There is a requested donation for each vaccine of $14.70. No student will be turned away because of an inability to pay. Vaccines are available at low to no cost through the federal Vaccines for Children program through age 18.

For more information, call Tambri Garcia at 259-1630, ext. 2107.

Riverview collecting used cellphones

In honor of Veterans Day, Riverview Elementary School will collect used cellphones from Nov. 5-16.

Donations to the Cell Phones for Soldiers program will provide troops with free calling cards.

The sale of drinks and snacks will help raise money for people who want to attend Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala., from June 8 to 14. Alumni are encouraged to attend and share their stories of what Space Camp/Aviation Challenge was like.

For more information, call Danny Jaques at 749-9387, Diana Wright at 799-4917 or visit www.spacecamp.com.

Animas High School announces events

Animas High School announces these events:

The 10th-grade humanities exhibition will be held from 5 to 6:30 p.m. today at the Durango Public Library, 1900 East Third Ave. In this project, called “The Truth of War,” students will answer the question: “What is the truth of war for soldiers?” The students will look at the literature of World War I and World War II and examine that literature through a historical lens before creating a written piece that attempts to express the truth of war.

The Parent Advisory Committee will meet from noon to 1 p.m. Monday at Durango Doughworks, 2653 Main Ave.

The first sophomore biology exhibition will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. Tuesday in the lodge at AHS. This exhibition is open to all sophomore parents and members of the community who work or volunteer for an ecology-related business. The students will be exhibiting management plans they have written for the Durango area to address ecological issues such as human-bear conflict, colony collapse disorder, invasive species, mega-fires and plastic consumption.

CowBelles to host cooking demonstration

The La Plata County CowBelles will host a beef cooking demonstration for the Bayfield High School cooking/home economics class at 2 p.m. Thursday at BHS.

Ginger Connors will teach her students about beef in November. The cattle women will help by providing the beef and other ingredients to show the students how to prepare Asian Cranberry-Ginger Sloppy Pockets. Additional recipes are available at the American National Cattle Women’s-National Beef Cook-Off website, www.beefcookoff.org.

Peggy Beebe and Patti Buck, local cattle ranchers, will show the students how to prepare the dish, and then allow the students to prepare the recipe for themselves.

Beebe and Buck will answer question about beef and how it is raised. A beef quiz game also will be held after the demonstration to see how much the students have learned about beef nutrition.